A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit Lansing, Michigan boy it was cold. Thankfully I was lucky enough to have missed any snow storms but the high was never over 30 degrees, sure was a huge change from San Francisco in January. I was here for work and really didn’t get a chance to check out the city, sometimes it’s tough to get motivated, in a city I’m not familiar with or a place that’s just darn cold. Sadly all I did was work, get dinner at a few subpar restaurants, and watch TV in my hotel room, at least I got to watch Oregon take down K State in the Fiesta Bowl. Go Pac-12. Traveling for work can sure be glamorous sometimes. Based on where I was working and the hotel options available to me I choose the Hampton Inn & Suites East Lansing/Okemos.

From the outside the hotel was pretty nondescript. It looked slightly old and underwhelming. I know it’s a Hampton what should I expect, but I’ve stayed at quite a few pretty nice ones, so I have pretty high expectations for them. Thankfully once I walked in I was quite surprised. The lobby was light, bright and airy. It had a really great ceramic tile floor in a wood pattern, and a very open breakfast area. This also doubled as a lobby hang out area with smaller tables and a large communal one in the center. Then off to one side was the breakfast nook which is a complimentary feature of all Hamptons. I believe that the hotel chain actually has a standard menu of food items they require the hotels to offer, but on some occasions, the hotels will add lib and offer a few regional items. In this particular case it seemed they were right on the mark with the normal options. They had a few hot items potatoes, French toast sticks, eggs, bacon and sausage and these items were rotated depending on the day. They also had toast, muffins, bagels, fresh fruit, fruit yoghurt, various cereals, juice, coffee and teas. Over all an ok spread, there was nothing wrong with it, it was just predictable. I’ve had this same meal so many times that’s it’s just boring to me. If you’re not a frequent Hampton visitor this meal is totally acceptable and you’ll go away full and satisfied.

Now onto the room. I had booked a king non-smoking room and that’s exactly what I got. It was very clean and pretty spacious. I had a king bed, a work desk and a side chair with ottoman. Again the floor was pretty interesting, with this really cool red and black patterned carpet, the colors of the room made it feel modern and warm, and made me feel comfortable. Speaking of comfortable the bed and pillows kicked butt. Hampton offers 2 or 3 different pillow options, so I can always find just the right one. The HD TV and work desk are a nice add on, although I didn’t need the work desk this time. As for the bathroom, I really don’t ask for much. Just a bathroom that’s big enough to stand in and not touch any of the walls, counter space larger than the sink so you can actually store stuff, hot water and quite pipes. Again it was not a fancy bathroom, but it was clean and fit my needs thanks again Hampton.

Overall a decent hotel, decent enough that I’m going to stay here again in a few weeks. It’s not the Ritz (I’ve never stayed at one), so who knows it may actually be. But for a midrange hotel, offering free parking, internet, free breakfast and clean rooms they’ve done a great job.

Particulars about the hotel:
• Hampton Inn & Suites East Lansing/Okemos
2200 Hampton Place, Okemos, Michigan, 48864, USA
• Free Parking
• Complimentary Wireless Internet
• Business Center
• Gym
• Indoor Pool
• Hilton Honors reward category: 3
• Rates usually start at $125
• Diamond Benefits:
• Not aware of any